lack of warmth:I heard Airforce has a special force now, but come on, they barely train their average soldier how to fight. I had a coworker leave for the Airforce couple of years ago, saying he was going to be a ground troop. I gave him the yeah right look, since the guy weighed a buck twenty. He relented and confessed that he'll be involved with frontline communications, from a safe position. I snickered and walked away. He was one of those 'buy the real military gear to play paintball or airsoft' guys.

The President of the United States of America, authorized by Title 10, Section 8742, United States Code, takes pride in presenting the Air Force Cross (Posthumously) to Senior Airman Jason Dean Cunningham, United States Air Force, for extraordinary heroism in military operations against an opposing armed force while serving as a Pararescueman of the 38th Rescue Squadron, 247th Operations Group, in action near the village of Marzak in the Paktia Province of Afghanistan on 4 March 2002. On that proud day, Airman Cunningham was the primary Air Force Combat Search and Rescue medic assigned to a Quick Reaction Force tasked to recover two American servicemen evading capture in austere terrain occupied by massed Al Qaida and Taliban forces. Shortly before landing, his MH-47E helicopter received accurate rocket-propelled grenade and small arms fire, severely disabling the aircraft and causing it to crash land. The assault force formed a hasty defense and immediately suffered three fatalities and five critical casualties. Despite effective enemy fire, and at great risk to his own life, Airman Cunningham remained in the burning fuselage of the aircraft in order to treat the wounded. As he moved his patients to a more secure location, mortar rounds began to impact within fifty feet of his position. Disregarding this extreme danger, he continued the movement and exposed himself to enemy fire on seven separate occasions. When the second casualty collection point was also compromised, in a display of uncommon valor and gallantry, Airman Cunningham braved an intense small arms and rocket-propelled grenade attack while repositioning the critically wounded to a third collection point. Even after he was mortally wounded and quickly deteriorating, he continued to direct patient movement and transferred care to another medic. In the end, his distinct efforts led to the successful delivery of ten gravely wounded Americans to life-saving medical treatment. Through his extraordinary heroism, superb airmanship, aggressiveness in the face of the enemy, and in the dedication of his service to his country, Senior Airman Cunningham reflected the highest credit upon himself and the United States Air Force.

We have an Army Research Laboratory and a Navy Research Laboratory. There's also an Air Force Research Laboratory.

Anybody got a good reason for why? Why isn't there a Defense Research Laboratory? Put them all in the same house and that cuts costs. They would still accomplish the needs of the missions of each service.

HappyGryphon:Trainees in trees... So with a round chute you can't aim. with all you see spent on the f22 debacle... Why the hell don't our airborne folks get a better chute? At least we know those work.

It seems like these days the Airborne just does the parachute stuff for a historical sense. Special forces uses their steerable stuff for all kinds of HALO and LALO jumps in small numbers, but combat drops are rare.

For example the last drop I'm aware of was in 2003 in Bashur. The airfield was actually coalition held, but the Airborne Mafia had the 173rd Airborne Brigade drop (and then fought to have it called a combat drop) so they claim the military did still paratrooper stuff.

The deal is that if it is safe enough to float your ass down as part of a mass drop, it is also likely safe enough to hop of a helicopter. About the only reasons you drop are because the C-130s can carry heavier equipment or the helis don't have the range.

They're called PJ's... the guys who go in under hostile fire to pull out casualties. They've actually been around for many decades.

Met some while in Kandahar. Badass guys... walls of muscle, and facial hair to appear like one of the locals. Heh... the first shirt told them that if they wanted to stay in the AF compound for more than a day, they would have to shave their beards, get haircuts and abide by AFI 36-2903. I have never seen a shirt, or really anyone, get chewed out like he did.

Rapmaster2000:Hmm, yes, my colleagues and I do the same but we argue for Harvard vs. Yale. The nerve of those Yalies!

A man from Harvard and a man from Yale are in a rest room urinating. Once they are done expressing them selves the man from Harvard goes to the wash basin and starts to was his hands. The man from Yale heads for the exit.

"Excuse me old chap" the man from Harvard remarks, " but at Harvard, they taught us to wash up after relieving ourselves ."

"Indeed!" Replies the Yalie, " At Yale, good sir, they instructed us to not piss on our hands!"

Cerebral Knievel:Rapmaster2000: Hmm, yes, my colleagues and I do the same but we argue for Harvard vs. Yale. The nerve of those Yalies!

A man from Harvard and a man from Yale are in a rest room urinating. Once they are done expressing them selves the man from Harvard goes to the wash basin and starts to was his hands. The man from Yale heads for the exit.

"Excuse me old chap" the man from Harvard remarks, " but at Harvard, they taught us to wash up after relieving ourselves ."

"Indeed!" Replies the Yalie, " At Yale, good sir, they instructed us to not piss on our hands!"

Yeah that joke has so many different renditions with so many different rival organizations.

Guys, wash your farking hands. I have no intention of shaking hands with your penis.

Tommyknocker2121:lack of warmth: I heard Airforce has a special force now, but come on, they barely train their average soldier how to fight. I had a coworker leave for the Airforce couple of years ago, saying he was going to be a ground troop. I gave him the yeah right look, since the guy weighed a buck twenty. He relented and confessed that he'll be involved with frontline communications, from a safe position. I snickered and walked away. He was one of those 'buy the real military gear to play paintball or airsoft' guys.

The President of the United States of America, authorized by Title 10, Section 8742, United States Code, takes pride in presenting the Air Force Cross (Posthumously) to Senior Airman Jason Dean Cunningham, United States Air Force, for extraordinary heroism in military operations against an opposing armed force while serving as a Pararescueman of the 38th Rescue Squadron, 247th Operations Group, in action near the village of Marzak in the Paktia Province of Afghanistan on 4 March 2002. On that proud day, Airman Cunningham was the primary Air Force Combat Search and Rescue medic assigned to a Quick Reaction Force tasked to recover two American servicemen evading capture in austere terrain occupied by massed Al Qaida and Taliban forces. Shortly before landing, his MH-47E helicopter received accurate rocket-propelled grenade and small arms fire, severely disabling the aircraft and causing it to crash land. The assault force formed a hasty defense and immediately suffered three fatalities and five critical casualties. Despite effective enemy fire, and at great risk to his own life, Airman Cunningham remained in the burning fuselage of the aircraft in order to treat the wounded. As he moved his patients to a more secure location, mortar rounds began to impact within fifty feet of his position. Disregarding this extreme danger ...

Look up William Pitsenbarger for an eeriely similar action in Vietnam. Pits eventually was awarded the MoH.

lack of warmth:Article doesn't say if the soldiers were using the old airborne style chute or the skydiver wing chute ( I am not going to pretend I know the proper names), for the later would be embarrassing. The former doesn't give hardly any control.

The question really isn't Army verses Navy when talking special forces, since the Army is used as a benchmark for how the other branches train their special forces. The real question would be Marine verses Seal. I heard Airforce has a special force now, but come on, they barely train their average soldier how to fight. I had a coworker leave for the Airforce couple of years ago, saying he was going to be a ground troop. I gave him the yeah right look, since the guy weighed a buck twenty. He relented and confessed that he'll be involved with frontline communications, from a safe position. I snickered and walked away. He was one of those 'buy the real military gear to play paintball or airsoft' guys.

You "heard" the USAF has special forces now? Well my friend you'd be wrong. Green Berets are the only "Special Forces", everyone else is an operator.

/USN DEVGRU is catching crap for talking to the media and removing the secrecy from their image//USAF Specops are smart enough not to do that. That's why you don't know about them.///Even SEALS have to call 911

lack of warmth: I heard Airforce has a special force now, but come on, they barely train their average soldier how to fight. I had a coworker leave for the Airforce couple of years ago, saying he was going to be a ground troop. I gave him the yeah right look, since the guy weighed a buck twenty. He relented and confessed that he'll be involved with frontline communications, from a safe position. I snickered and walked away. He was one of those 'buy the real military gear to play paintball or airsoft' guys.

PJs (pararescue) are some of the baddest mother farkers around. Period. PJs are who SEALs and Green Berets call for medical evac and who are tasked with recovering pilots downed behind enemy lines. They are air force. Yeah.

Old Fark meme... one farker tried to claim that he was a "soldier in the marine core"... and was, ahem, called out on his bullshiat.

He then blamed the "typo" on the fact that his wife was supposedly typing the post on his behalf. Good times. Anybody have a link to that thread?

No shiat? HA! Would love to see that thread myself. I don't normally brag about being in the Corps, but when someone misspells it, even Pocket Ninja, I must say something. To all my brothers out there reading this: OOH RAH!

What the fark did you just farking say about me, you little biatch? I'll have you know I graduated top of my class in the Navy Seals, and I've been involved in numerous secret raids on Al-Quaeda, and I have over 300 confirmed kills. I am trained in gorilla warfare and I'm the top sniper in the entire US armed forces. You are nothing to me but just another target. I will wipe you the fark out with precision the likes of which has never been seen before on this Earth, mark my farking words. You think you can get away with saying that shiat to me over the Internet? Think again, farker. As we speak I am contacting my secret network of spies across the USA and your IP is being traced right now so you better prepare for the storm, maggot. The storm that wipes out the pathetic little thing you call your life. You're farking dead, kid. I can be anywhere, anytime, and I can kill you in over seven hundred ways, and that's just with my bare hands. Not only am I extensively trained in unarmed combat, but I have access to the entire arsenal of the United States Marine Corps and I will use it to its full extent to wipe your miserable ass off the face of the continent, you little shiat. If only you could have known what unholy retribution your little "clever" comment was about to bring down upon you, maybe you would have held your farking tongue. But you couldn't, you didn't, and now you're paying the price, you goddamn idiot. I will shiat fury all over you and you will drown in it. You're farking dead, kiddo.

Arkanaut:Shostie: Wouldn't the Green Berets be a closer match to the SEALs?

Not really -- as I understand, SEALs and Rangers are both geared towards quick-strike raids, whereas the Special Forces tend to do more long-term "adviser" -type stuff -- working with local guerrilla groups to fight against a common foe.

/ex-boss was a Green Beret.

Yea, this is sort of the case, but comparing Delta Force to the SEALs is probably the best analogy. They have similar fast-strike specialization. Just about any motivated infantryman can become a ranger, but only the top performers make it into Delta Force.

Bender The Offender:Ranger are the army's SEAL team 6? Thanks for that bit of stupidity subby, I would've thought Delta but I'm more interested in facts than being a dick.

I thought it was Delta Force as well. Seal Team 6 was created to handle counter-terrorism and the extreme jobs that need ultra-specialized training. They're the best of the best in the Navy. Same thing with Delta Force. To say that the Rangers are the Army's equivalent of SEAL Team 6 is like saying that Kraft Parmesan in a can is the same as well-aged Parmesan imported from Italy.

Arkanaut:Shostie: Wouldn't the Green Berets be a closer match to the SEALs?Not really -- as I understand, SEALs and Rangers are both geared towards quick-strike raids, whereas the Special Forces tend to do more long-term "adviser" -type stuff -- working with local guerrilla groups to fight against a common foe./ex-boss was a Green Beret.

Sorry. Incorrect. The Navy SEALs during Vietnam did long-term "adviser" roles with the Cambodians on river operations.Basing it on a single role they can play in military strategy is shortchanging the Navy SEALs and what they can do. SEALs can do quick-strike raids, demolitions, and other roles on Sea, Air, and Land, hence the acronym. As a whole, based upon everything--fitness, training, skills, etc--Delta Force is the closest to Navy SEAL Team 6.

(Grasping) 20 Of The Dirtiest Pussies In Hollywood, Which Is Actually a Link (Featured Partner) to a Slideshow of Unbathed Cats in Encino, Which, by Trying to Appeal to Prurient Interest We Hope You Will Click Reimagined for People Who Eschew Cheesecake for Dessert

My wife's uncle got caught in a tree during a night jump in Vietnam. They told them if they got caught to not to make any noise or turn on any lights lest they draw the attention of the enemy. So he hung there for several hours in complete darkness. When there was enough light to see, he saw he was bout 6 feet off the ground. By that time his legs had no feeling. So he just cut loose and dropped. He said that the jump harness they wore had a strap that was about 30 feet long that could be deployed to climb down in case something like this happened.

casual disregard:Anybody got a good reason for why? Why isn't there a Defense Research Laboratory? Put them all in the same house and that cuts costs. They would still accomplish the needs of the missions of each service.

Stargate Command isn't going to fall under anyone else's budget but the Air Force.